Trading Services: How To Respond When Asked To

Do you ever struggle with how to respond when asked about trading services?

Is trading services a normal business practice for you?

Many people absolutely refuse to trade services. They even feel offended when people ask. Whereas others find it to be beneficial for their business and are happy to do it.

Regardless of your policy on trades, it’s useful to have a response ready when people ask you to consider it.

Recently during a live Q&A coaching call for my Sticky Selling Mastery Academy Group Program, this topic came up. One of my clients had been asked to do a trade with someone that she'd like to have as a client, yet wasn't interested in the services of the person asking for the trade. She wanted to know the best response to keep the rapport in place and still feel confident in asking for the sale.

Trading Services: A Dose Of Clarity

Before sharing the answer of how to do this, let's add a little dose of clarity to the situation. When someone asks you to trade with them, they're asking to sell you something. There's absolutely nothing wrong with asking someone for their business. There's also nothing wrong with telling the person asking, you're not interested. I wrote an article awhile back called 3 Ways To Say “No” & Mean It to address this very topic. Just because someone wants to sell you something, doesn't mean you're obligated to buy even when there's a trade being offered.

Possible Responses

For anyone feeling a little uncomfortable on how to respond when asked to trade, here are a few possible responses:

“Thank you for asking, I don't do trades for services. However, it would be my honor to earn your business. Is that something you'd like to chat about further?”

“Thank you for asking, as much as I appreciate what you offer, it's just not a good fit for me. When you ready to work together as a paying client, I'd love to assist you.”

“Thank you for asking, trades are not something I'm able to do. I'd be honored to work with you as a client in a more traditional sense if that's interesting to you.”

Keep in mind, how you say any of the above statements will likely determine the other person's reaction.  Be sure to soften your voice just slightly, and let your body language demonstrate your openness. If you come off as offended or even sassy, you'll likely damage the rapport and risk the chance of earning the person's business when they can afford your services.

Wishing you a successful week!

Agree? Disagree? Have additional comments or thoughts on this article? Please share.